


Flower Crowns and Crime Novels

by SaltyCatPerson



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Author!Shiro, Because he’s amazing, Everyone Loves Shiro, Fluff, Heartbreak, I’m sorry, Keith and Lance are Best Friends, M/M, Modern Day, Neglect, Shiro likes cats, angst later on..., florist!keith, jk yes I am, keith likes hippos, lol no i’m Not, modern day AU, voltron doesn’t exist
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-16
Updated: 2018-09-14
Packaged: 2019-06-28 09:25:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15704436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaltyCatPerson/pseuds/SaltyCatPerson
Summary: ⚠️⚠️DISCONTINUED⚠️⚠️"The man behind the counter looked up from the small bouquet he was currently arranging. He gazed at Takashi with his gorgeous, violet eyes before bearing a soft smile at him, "hello.. welcome, I'm Keith. I run the shop. Need anything in particular?" He asked in a sweet tone. Takashi just stared at him, "you're gorgeous.." he accidentally muttered, making Keith's eyes widen and blush deeply. "Well.. thanks.." he replied and pushed his hair behind his ear before smiling again. Takashi covered his mouth, "u-uh.. sorry, I didn't mean to.. uhm.. say that out loud.." he muffled."Takashi Shirogane writes crime novels and is quite well-known within his city and quite a lot of the country. He has to visit a florists nearby for an occasion he doesn't want to attend, where he meets a gorgeous, young man running the counter. His name was Keith.Takashi kept his identity quiet to Keith, just in case he changed his ways around him and acted much kinder than he would if Takashi was a normal person.





	1. Chapter 1

Today was the day that Takashi Shirogane didn't want to happen. His mother's death. He knew this day was coming but he had denied it for weeks. She had grown very ill and became very weak. Takashi was the one who had to keep the family positive as that's how he was raised, optimistic.

On the contrary to his optimism, he wrote crime novels. His work was quite well known, so money was never a problem. 

A couple of weeks had gone by, he hadn't written a single word. His novels stopped coming, he lost the will to write. He couldn't even think of what to write, his hands shaky when picking up a pen. 

Takashi and other close family members had planned the funeral, it was his job to collect the flowers. He was instructed to choose his mother's favourites, chrysanthemums, which symbolised joy and optimism.

On the day of the funeral, Takashi woke up earlier than usual. He had found it difficult to sleep for the past two weeks, bags had become a familiar feature to his face. Takashi set out to the nearest florists, which he had never visited before. It was named 'Kogane Flowers', not the most imaginative name but he didn't really care. As he walked in, a small bell rung and he was drowned in a variety of different scents. 

The man behind the counter looked up from the small bouquet he was currently arranging. He gazed at Takashi with his gorgeous, violet eyes before bearing a soft smile at him, "hello.. welcome, I'm Keith. I run the shop. Need anything in particular?" He asked in a sweet tone. Takashi just stared at him, "you're gorgeous.." he accidentally muttered, making Keith's eyes widen and blush deeply. "Well.. thanks.." he replied and pushed his hair behind his ear before smiling again. Takashi covered his mouth, "u-uh.. sorry, I didn't mean to.. uhm.. say that out loud.." he muffled, "uh.. do you have any chrysanthemums?" Takashi proceeded to ask, with an embarrassed blush on his face. Keith nodded and pointed over to the corner of the shop, "pretty, aren't they?"  
"Yeah, quite.." he said as Keith walked over to him. He picked a few of the nicer ones and took them to the counter. While Keith arranged them, he glanced up at Takashi every now and then before asking, "so, if you don't mind me asking, what's the occasion?"  
Takashi felt a stinging pain in his heart as Keith asked him, "o-oh.. uhm.. I'm going to a funeral.." he replied quietly, making Keith frown. "Oh, I'm so sorry to hear.. I hope everything goes well.."  
"Thank you.." Takashi looked down. 

Once Keith finished, Takashi took out his wallet. Keith shook his head, "no, don't worry. You don't have to pay.." This made Takashi raise an eyebrow, "no, I insist.. let me pay.." he said and handed him a note. Keith pushed it back, "no, seriously.. let's just say that compliment was your payment." He smiled. 

Just then, another staff member walked in. He was slightly taller and more tanned than Keith, they looked the same age. "Oh, hey Lance.. back from your break already?" Keith asked him. "Yeah.. Pidge got us kicked out of Sephora!" 'Lance' whined, making Keith sigh. "You know she hates makeup stores.."  
Shiro's eyes widened, "hey.. you go to Sephora too?" He blurted out. Lance turned to him and grinned, "yeah! It's great there. Hey.. you look.. familiar.. have we met before? Have we met in Sephora before?" He peered at Takashi. 'Maybe he was a fan?' He thought to himself, I mean, he did put a small self-portrait on the back of his novels. "Uh.. no.. I don't think so.. uhm, anyways I better get going. Thanks, Keith.."  
"It's no problem, uh.."  
"Shiro." Takashi replied, not using his first name just in case he recognised it.  
"Shiro.. I hope everything goes well today.." Keith said sympathetically and gave him an encouraging smile. Once Takashi left, he could hear Lance mumbling something to Keith. Something along the lines of, 'I've never seen you smile!' 'What did he do to make you smile?' 'Did he say something?' 'Have you gone soft?'  
"Oh shut up.. he's only a customer.. I barely know the guy! He's nice, though." Keith hissed back and thumped Lance. "Ouch.. I was only kidding, mr TakesNothingAsAJoke.."  
Keith grunted, that was the last thing Takashi could hear before heading to the funeral.


	2. Chapter 2

A few days had passed since the funeral. Takashi was in the park, he had been visiting it more often for peace and contentment. He gazed into the lake, which was opposite the bench he had sat down on. The water shimmered as the sun was setting, so the reflection that skimmed across the lake shone gold. 

It was nearing the end of autumn, so the days became shorter. It was only about 5:00pm. Takashi always liked this time of year. He had always found autumn pretty, with the different shades of leaves and how they'd spiral off the trees quite gracefully. It was the time of year in which he'd get most of his inspiration for his books as crime could happen more as it was always darker earlier. 

"Pretty season, isn't it?" A familiar voice from behind the bench said, making Takashi jump and turn around. It was Keith from the florists that he went to the other day. "Ah! Sorry, I didn't know you were there.." Takashi murmured, making Keith chuckle. The smaller man climbed over the bench and sat next to him, "no need, I'm sorry for making you jump.."  
Shiro smiled, "hey.. I know it's kinda late.. and we.. uhm.. hardly know each other.. but would you like to grab a coffee with me..?" He asked awkwardly, "I'm sorry.. but you're insanely gorgeous.." Takashi admitted and looked into the other's eyes, which had widened slightly. "Well.. thanks.. I'm mean, sure. We can go get coffee.. I'd love to get to know you.." Keith murmured as a blush appeared on his face from embarrassment. Takashi stood up, shoving his hands into his pockets. He smiled at Keith, "come on, I know a good place close by.." he said as Keith stood up. They walked through the park, which was quite deserted by now. Only a few couples seemed to wander through.

After an hour or so of talking and getting to know each other, the pair seemed quite comfortable with one another. Smiling and laughing as if they had been friends for years. "Hey, uhm.. I think we should do this again.. it was fun.." Keith smiled and bit his lip, Takashi's eyes widened and a genuine smile appeared, "really..? That's great.. I've kinda put my work on hiatus for a while.. so I'm free whenever, basically.."  
"Awesome, my break starts at 1 and finishes around 2.. so drop by just before then tomorrow and we can go somewhere." Keith said, Takashi nodded. "I'll see you then, Keith.."  
"See you soon, Shiro.." he replied and they both stood up, hesitantly parting ways with the other. The two kept glance back at the other. They seemed to click quite quickly.

Shiro sighed contently, this was the first time in about a month where he actually feels happy. He couldn't contain his goofy smile that Keith had accidentally insinuated on him. Of course, it was too early to say that he was in love.   
Obviously.   
However he hadn't made any friends or been social (in a happy circumstance), so Takashi felt more alive. He felt the first happy emotions he had in a long time. Takashi needed distractions from his mother's death and Keith might be that perfect distraction. Plus, he seemed to get along quite well with the other male. He couldn't wait to see him again, Takashi loved his newfound friend.

Once Takashi got home, he checked his phone for any new news.   
'Takashi Shirogane presumed dead'  
'No novels, no social media interactions, nothing showed by Takashi'  
'Takashi Shirogane, dead'

'Huh.. whoops.. I died without knowing.' He thought to himself before chuckling. Takashi didn't feel like writing or talking to people via social media at the moment. He was still hurting, even if he seemed positive around Keith. 

It would still take a while until he felt like writing again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even though I absolutely adore Sheith, I must say that they're also BROTP! Like, their friendship is actually amazing 


	3. Chapter 3

At about 12:55pm, Takashi showed up to 'Kogane Flowers'. The wave of scents hit him once more as the tiny bell rang for his arrival. Keith glanced up from the customer he was serving, a woman around the same age and the same height as Takashi with long curly white hair. He smiled at Takashi and waved, the woman turned and gave Takashi a small smile. As Takashi was quite an upbeat person, he smiled back at the woman. He had always been friendly towards strangers. It was nothing strange or new, he was just accustomed to that way of treating people. The woman turned back around to pay for the small bouquet. She headed for the door before turning to Takashi, "I'm assuming you're a new friend of Keith's.. he never smiles," the woman joked and chuckled sweetly, "I'm Allura.. I work at the coffee shop, Altea, just down the road."  
"Oh! I went there yesterday with Keith, actually. It's a great place!"  
"Oh really? Well, it's the hang out place for Keith and his staff after they close for the night on some occasions.. you should drop by then!" Allura suggested, Keith nodded in the background before walking over to us. "Yeah! And Allura.. I do smile.. when it's worth it.." Keith corrected, making the woman roll her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, okay.. anyways I better get going, I'll see you later, Keith! And I hope to see you around.."  
"Shiro." Takashi said, Allura smiled. "Well, Shiro, I hope to see you around more often. I'll be off now.." she gave them a small wave before strutting off through the glass door, the small bell ringing her exit.

"She seems nice.." Takashi said and watched her through the glass. Keith hummed in agreement, "yes.. she's been coming here quite regularly so I started recognising her face. Then I saw her in 'Altea' and we just decided to get talking. Lance has had the largest crush on her for a while.." he chuckled before heading to the counter, "let me grab my stuff, I'll be out in a minute!" Keith called from, what Takashi guessed, the staff room.

Takashi waited outside the shop and examined the warmed colours of autumn around him. Keith walked out a couple minutes later, he was dressed differently. He was now wearing a red flannel with a black vest underneath and a black beanie, to protect his hair from the small breeze brushing against the buildings, people and trees. "Ready?" Takashi asked with a smile, Keith nodded and they began to walk through the park.

They spoke about a variety of things, one of the topics being relationships. "So? Is there someone in your life at the moment?" Keith asked while gazing at the sky, which was peppered in light grey clouds. "No.. not at the moment, I've been single for a while now.." Takashi admitted and spotted the bench that stood opposite the broad lake, "what about you? Is there a misses to help you around the shop..?" He asked while the two sat down. Keith shook his head, "actually, it'd be a mister.. but no, not at the moment.. and before you ask.. yes, I'm gay. Got a problem with that?" He snapped the last part defensively, making Takashi jump slightly. Keith seemed to tense up slightly, hard eyes focused on the ground now. "No, of course not.. I'm sorry if I offended you.. I have nothing wrong with you being gay.. besides, I'm not exactly the straightest person either.." Takashi replied and looked at Keith with his kind eyes. Keith's expression soften as he looked up at Shiro, he smiled weakly, "oh.. sorry for snapping.. I've just.. met some people who thought otherwise on my sexuality.." Keith mumbled, Takashi placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry to hear.. well, don't worry because I'm not going to judge you.. you seem like a nice guy.."  
Keith sighed, "thank you.. and sorry once again for snapping at you.. you didn't know.."  
"It's okay.." Takashi smiled.

A few minutes went by, Keith had remembered something he heard from yesterday. "I don't know if you've heard, but Takashi Shirogane might be dead.. I read it in the news, it was everywhere on the local news websites.." Keith fretted and looked beyond the lake, "I quite like him as an author.. it sucks that there's a possibility that he's dead.."  
Takashi' eyes widened, 'so Keith's a fan?' He thought before smiling to himself, which he had to stop immediately as Keith was talking about how he could be dead. It wasn't an appropriate time to smile. "Yeah.. I heard.. I'm sure he's not dead.. I mean, he's probably just taking a break or something.." Takashi murmured, trying to make it believable as possible. Keith hummed in agreement.

After a while of talking, the pair's faces began flushing red as the cold began to get to them. Their breath was visible, fingertips growing numb. Keith turned to Takashi and frowned slightly, "I'm not ready for winter.. most, if not all, flowers die in this season.. business will stop.. which kinda sucks.. we have to preserve more flowers indoors.. it's quite difficult.." he sighed, a cloud of steam escaping him mouth. "Yeah.. I hope your business doesn't die.. that'd really suck.." Takashi agreed and smiled sympathetically to the man sitting beside him. "Well.. I better get back to the shop.. it was really nice hanging out with you again.. come visit whenever.." Keith smiled before standing up, "bye, Shiro!" He said and walked away.  
"See you soon, Keith!" Takashi called and chuckled to himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!  
> Thank you for reading, I really appreciate it!
> 
> It’s nice to see that people are enjoying it so far


	4. Chapter 4

A month or so went by, Takashi's mood had improved quite a bit. He was still hung up over his mother's death but he was lucky enough to have supportive people surrounding him. He had grown friendly with the other staff members and Allura. Takashi also met Coran, an older man with bright ginger hair and a moustache. He's Allura's manager, so he knew the staff at the florists quite well too. However he seemed closest with Lance because he reminded him of his son, who had gone off to the military. Takashi felt that he could relate to Coran a lot as they were the two oldest, even if Coran was far older than him. 

Takashi started spending time with everyone individually as well as a group.   
\- Explored Sephora with Lance  
\- Looked around the science museum with Pidge  
\- Ate at the food court in the shopping centre with Hunk  
\- Worked out at the gym with Allura (who knew that she'd love working out)  
\- Visited the history museum with Coran  
\- And did a mix of things with Keith but mainly hung out at the park.

Yes, Takashi was definitely closest to the mulleted male with the gorgeous eyes. Everyone had told him at least twice that Keith only smiles around him, which he found difficult to believe. Takashi felt that Keith was the sweetest of the five adults (and Pidge) that he'd recently met. No one, not even Keith, agreed with the fact that he was 'sweet'. "Keith is like.. the odd one out.. I mean we love him to bits.. buuuut.." Allura started.  
"He's kind of the loner of the group." Pidge shrugged and adjusted her glasses. Takashi frowned, "oh.. I see.. but he seems completely fine and happy with you guys too.."  
"Shiro, it doesn't matter.. it doesn't bother me.." Keith said and placed his hand on Takakshi's arm, "they're right anyway. I'm not exactly the most popular guy anyw-"  
"Don't say that.. you aren't a loner. It's clear that you're loved and welcomed by us." Takashi placed a finger on Keith's lips to silence him, without thinking, he took a hold of Keith's hand. It felt soft but bony, they're quite slim hands as his body type is slim, maybe he worked out? His hand was also quite cold, so Takashi's hands must've been quite warm to Keith. 

The two glanced down at their fingers, which slowly interlaced. Both Takashi and Keith felt the world stop in this moment, they looked at each other with wide eyes.  
"I'm sorry.. but can I take you out on a date sometime soon..?" Takashi blurted out, making Keith blush and the others 'awhhh'. After a couple minutes of cooing from their 'completely mature' group of friends, Keith nodded with a smile, "yeah.. okay.."  
The others cheered, making Takashi blush from embarrassment and scratch the back of his head. The two males gazed at each other and exchanged smiles.

"Well.. I better get home. Keith, I can text you the details later. Bye guys.." Takashi chirped and stood up from the sofas that the group had parked themselves at in 'Altea'. Everyone waved at him and said their goodbyes, "and remember, if you hurt lil Mullet head over here.." Lance started, before being interrupted by Keith.  
"Hey!" Keith hissed, however he was ignored.  
"We will all kill you.. slowly.." Lance and the rest of the gang grinned at Takashi, who gave him a weak smile in return.  
"Yeah.. uh.. I'll try not to hurt him.." Takashi replied with fear in his tone, "see you guys later.."   
Once he left the softly lit building, he saw Hunk and Pidge patting Keith on the back, Lance ruffling his hair and everyone congratulating him through the window. They all looked genuinely happy for him, Takashi couldn't afford to hurt Keith now, not that he had planned to, it just seemed like more pressure was added.

Later that night, Takashi texted Keith. He replied almost instantly, which made the older male's heart flutter. Takashi was surprised at how he just asked him out like it was nothing, maybe the fact that Keith had looked at him lovingly earlier made him more confident. Whatever it was, he was glad that he had asked.

He was more glad that Keith said yes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating I’m a couple of days!
> 
> So just to let you know, the entire fanfic has already been written, it’s just a matter of me uploading the parts!
> 
> I hope you’re enjoying this! Thank you for reading :)


	5. Chapter 5

Takashi had decided to take Keith to a movie. Considering his novels, he wanted to watch either an action film or a mystery. Keith agreed to action because that had always been his favourite genre.

They met outside the cinema. As they saw each other, the two waved and smiled. Keith jogged up to Takashi, condensation escaping his mouth in each breath. Once Keith had ran into the glow of the street lamps, Takashi saw what he was wearing. A red hoodie with a small printing of black cat whiskers, 'must be a cat person..' he thought. Keith was also wearing black ripped jeans and black Converses. Takashi himself was wearing a black band t-shirt (however he had never listened to the band he just liked the design), black jeans and boots. 

"Hey, Shiro." Keith said and stuffed his hands into his hoodie pocket. "Hey, Keith.. are you a cat person by any chance?" Takashi smiled and looked at the print, Keith nodded. "I prefer them to dogs.. but they aren't my favourite animal.."  
"So what is?"  
"A hippo."  
Takashi blinked, "well that was an.. unexpected answer.." he chuckled. Keith grinned, "heh.. is it? Well then, what's yours?" He asked.   
If he was honest, Takashi's favourite animal is a cat, however he didn't want to seem boring, "A.. Lion.." he said, lions are still cats so he technically wasn't lying. "Hm. Well fair enough, lions are pretty cool.." Keith commented before grabbing Takashi's hand, "let's go in, shall we?"   
Takashi nodded as it was starting to get cold out in the open air.

Once they got inside, they were bombarded with people buying tickets, grabbing popcorn and queuing up by the screening room door. "I'll get the tickets, you get the popcorn?" Takashi suggested, Keith nodded in agreement and walked over in the direction of the strong scent of a cliché cinema setting. 

Takashi walked over to the long queue for the booth and waited. In front of him was a group of girls who looked a little younger than him, possibly Keith's age. They were quite loud and made the majority of the noise in the large crowded room. One had turned around to him, giving him a smirk, "hey.. what's a handsome guy like you doing here on your own~?" She asked in an odd seductive tone. After a few minutes of her weird flirting, Takashi managed to spit out, "uh.. actually, I'm not here on my own.. I have a date." She frowned and raised an eyebrow, "oh really..? So where is she?"  
"He.." Keith had corrected her while walking over with two bags of popcorn, he stood next to Takashi before baring a smile at him, "is this lady giving you trouble, Shiro?" He asked softly, glaring at the woman afterwards. Takashi shook his head, "no, it's okay," he said with a frown directed to the woman. She scoffed, "well whatever..." she quickly stuffed her hand into her handbag, the woman had retrieved a pen and an old receipt that she conveniently had. She started to scribble some numbers and a name on it before handing it to Takashi, "If it doesn't work out, call me." She said with a wink before catching up with her friends, who had already paid for the tickets. Takashi and Keith looked at each other and shrugged, they stepped forward and Takashi paid for the tickets.

Keith and Takashi stood in the endless line of loud youths, couples and families. They began to small talk for a couple minutes before they were allowed in. The different huddles decided to push past eagerly to get in. "This must be a pretty hyped up movie.." Keith commented quietly and dragged Takashi inside the screening room.

About halfway through the trailers and adverts, both of the males had finished their popcorn. Takashi offered to buy more popcorn for the two, Keith smiled and thanked him. He smiled back as he stood up and left the dimly lit room. The queue for the popcorn wasn't nearly as long as the queue Keith had lined up in. Soon enough, he had two new bags of popcorn. 

Takashi headed back to Keith, who was now being interrogated by the woman from earlier and her group of friends from the row in front of them. 'What a coincidence that they'd be watching this too..' he thought to himself. Once he sat down, the ladies turned back around and giggled. Takashi looked at Keith, "you alright..?" He asked softly and quietly as he handed him the bag of popcorn. Keith nodded, "I'm fine.. they were just asking me stupid questions about you.." he replied quietly. Takashi sighed, he didn't even want to know what kinds of things they were asking, "wanna move seats?"   
"Yes, please.."   
The two of them stood up and moved to another place swiftly.

The lights turned off, everyone went quiet and the movie started to play. Once again, Keith and Takashi had finished their popcorn within a matter of minutes. They decided against getting a third bag as they were both enjoying the movie. Slowly, Keith moved his hand to Takashi's and held onto it. Takashi squeezed Keith's hand and quickly smiled at him in the dark. Keith smiled back, then turned back to the film and leaned his head on Takashi's shoulder. He smiled again to himself before continuing to watch the film.

After the film, the two males walked out of the cinema hand-in-hand. Once they had left, cold breeze whistled past them. Keith let go of Takashi's hand and placed his hands in his pocket, Takashi did the same. "This was fun.." Keith smiled, shivering slightly from the icy air. "Yeah, it was.." Takashi agreed, "want me to walk you home?"  
"That'd be nice, thanks.." Keith replied then started to walk in the direction of his house. 

As they walked to Keith's house, they talked about the movie, they spoke about other things too. Then a question that Keith had wondered for a while popped up, "so, what is your job? Like, what do you do?"  
Takashi froze, he didn't want to tell Keith right now just in case it affected their relationship. "If we go on another date.. and it goes well, I'll tell you." He said quietly.  
"Oh, I'm sorry if I offended you or-"  
"No no, it's fine, you didn't offend me." Takashi assured Keith, who smiled in return. "Okay.. good.. heh.."

They reached Keith's house, they hugged and said their goodbyes. On the way home, Takashi couldn't stop smiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! :)


	6. Chapter 6

"He's perfect.." Keith breathed out as he explained the successful date to his coworkers. The shop was quite empty today, slow moving. So the fact that Takashi had flooded Keith's thoughts wasn't a problem. He leaned his elbows on the counter, his chin being held up by his hands, a goofy smile seemed to be plastered on his face the whole time. Lance, who had been listening to Keith rambling on about the older man, smiled, "I'm glad that he makes you happy, Keith. You guys seemed to get along very well since the beginning.. and he's a nice guy!"   
Pidge and Hunk hummed in agreement, they hadn't been paying as much attention as they were still doing their jobs even if the ship was empty. "I'm just glad that you all like him.. thanks for being supportive.. I think we're going on another date next week.. I'm taking him to the carnival! It's opened up for the start of December, the festive season 'n all.." Keith continued before standing up as a group of customers had walked through the door. Lance looked at Keith and whispered, "we can continue this conversation later if you'd like.." he winked and went to greet the customers with his usual, warm welcome.

Keith's shift had ended, he grabbed his coat and waited for Lance to get his stuff. Lance had waited for Keith's break to start to have his at the same time so they could continue the earlier conversation. Once he had put on his coat, the two men walked out of the shop after saying goodbye to Hunk and Pidge.

Clouds of thick condensation seeped out of their mouths whilst talking, they made their way down the icy pavement to 'Altea'. They made it inside. Unlike Keith's shop, 'Altea' was packed with groups of people. Warm air from the heaters and body heat was washed over Keith and Lance. Allura was working her shift, she spotted the two guys standing at the doorway and waved them over. They obliged and shuffled past crowds of teenagers until reaching the counter where a smiling Allura stood behind. 

"Hey, boys!" She called over the crowd, her soft voice seeming to swoon over the taller male she had recognised. "H-hey, Allura.." Lance stuttered and grinned back, he was blushing slightly. Keith noticed this and rolled his eyes and grinned, "hey, Allura."   
"So.." she looked left and right before leaning over the counter, "how did the date go? I know I'm not supposed to have a conversation while I'm working.. but I'm curious, plus my shift doesn't end for an hour or so.."   
"It went.. really well.." Keith replied and looked down before smiling to himself. Allura cooed, "Awh! I'm glad.." she then turned to Lance, "what about you? Got a special someone yet?" Allura smirked. "U-uh.. no.. not yet.. b-but I don't need anyone! If I were to have a girlfriend, she'd get jealous from all the attention I get from the the other ladies!" Lance exclaimed, he then turned to a young woman and winked at her. She blushed and smiled before turning away. Lance looked back and retained his familiar smirk, which made Allura sigh. "Oh whatever.." she rolled her eyes, "anyway, what do you guys want to order?"

The two males had a couple of hot chocolates as it was cold out. Besides, who doesn't love a good hot chocolate? Keith and Lance took a few minutes searching for a vacant table, easier said than done. The guys had finally spotted a couple free sofas located a in the far corner, Lance went to retrieve it by vigorously pushing past crowds of teenagers. Keith sighed as he saw his friend having rude comments thrown in his direction. He followed him, not caring to apologise for Lance's actions. They sat down next to each other, sinking into the brown leather sofas. 

A few minutes had gone by, Keith was happily talking away about Takashi. Lance smiled acceptingly and nodded to show he was listening which, in fairness, he was. Allura walked over and was able to buy a couple minutes of talking by explaining to Coran that she was 'clearing up their table'. Lance just seemed to stare at her, a small smile and faint blush on his face. 

As soon as she left, Lance turned to Keith. He had a smirk across his face, "dude.. it's so obvious.."  
"I'm so straight for her.." Lance replied, and looked away from embarrassment. Keith chuckled, "first you say you're gay for Chris Pratt, then you say you're straight for Allura.."  
"Shut up!" Lance nudged the paler man, he nudged back.  
"Never.." Keith smirked again before continuing, "Lance, if you like her so much, why don't you ask her out?"  
"It's not that simple.."  
Keith rolled his eyes at the tediousness of Lance, "yes it is. The worst that could happen is that she rejects you and you stay friends. She's not the type of person to ignore you if she rejects you.." He protested. Lance sighed, "I guess so.." he paused for a second to think, "okay.. I might ask her out.. eventually.. anyways! I want to ask you questions on Shiro!"  
"Uhm.. okay.. what do you want to know..?"  
Lance leaned in to Keith's ear, "did he touch you in inappropriate places?"  
"What? No-"  
"Did he force you into doing something you didn't want to do?"  
"Lance-"  
"Did he give you dru-"  
"Lance!" Keith covered Lance's mouth, "he was very sweet, actually.."  
Lance laughed evilly, "I know, I know, you've said. I'm only teasing!"

Keith grumbled and checked his phone for the time, "we better get back.. you finished your drink?"  
"Yep! Let's go!" He said and jumped up, making Keith sink lower into the sofa, "oops! Sorry!" Lance chuckled and grinned. Keith stood up, with difficulty. The two waved goodbye to Allura before making their way out of the small café.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eek hello there, here’s Chapter 6!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed! <3


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro and Keith go on a cute carnival date, the older one finally reveals his secret job!

A week had gone by, Keith took Takashi to the carnival that had opened that week. They spent their time playing rigged carnival games, they didn't care that they were schemes for the business to make more money. It was fun for them.

They had, however, found a shooting game which Takashi was determined to win as he wanted to win a stuffed hippo for Keith. He remembered that hippos were his favourite animal. The prize had caught Keith's eye, his face lit up when gazing at it. This gave Takashi more motivation to win it. 

He did.

For the rest of the night, Keith was carrying round the hippo. 

After a couple more hours of wandering around the brightly lit neon stalls, the two decided to go on the Ferris Wheel then go home. They stood in line, a small breeze whistling past the crowded space. After decades of waiting, Keith and Takashi finally got onto the Ferris Wheel car. The breeze from earlier had followed them, becoming harsher the higher up they were. Takashi put his arm around Keith, he gazed at the tremendous view of city lights. Keith had nuzzled into Takashi's touch, he sighed contently. 

The noise of the crowds had died down, making it a more peaceful night for the time being. The two men sat in silence, huddled up together as they peered at the breathtaking view. Once they reached the top, Takashi moved gently away from Keith so he could turn his head. They locked eyes for a few seconds, "I have never been so sure on anyone.. Keith.. will you be my-"  
Takashi was cut off by the smaller male pushing forwards, their lips now touching. Takashi was startled, but soon kissed back. So much emotion was put into the kiss. Their first kiss. It was as if this was the last time they'd ever see each other. As if they'd never get to have another moment like this again. 

However, the kiss wasn't rough. In fact, it was quite soft. Their lips fitted together perfectly, almost too perfectly. Like they were soulmates. In that moment, the two men felt that they were soulmates.

Eventually they pulled away, both quite reluctant. Keith gazed up at Takashi, "yes.. I will.." he said quietly with a smile. Takashi gave a sweet smile in return before returning to the position of closeness, his arm around Keith once more.

The two walked to the front of the carnival, Keith turned to Takashi, "hey.. you told me that if this date went well, you'd tell me what your job is.. so.. what is it? Why is it such a secret..?"  
Takashi thought for a second, "let me show you.." he said and grabbed Keith's hand and walked back to his house.

Takashi had a fairly nice house, good size. He had taken up part time jobs so he could still get some income, Takashi hadn't felt ready to write until now so he didn't receive as much money. Keith looked at the house, his eyes widening slightly, "wow.." he said in awe, "if you turn out to be a stripper or something, I'm running away.." Keith joked. They stepped inside to escape the cold, Takashi's hallway was covered in news articles to do with himself and his novels. He swore to himself that he wasn't a narcissist.

Keith looked at the news clippings before turning to Takashi, "I don't get how this tells me what you do for a job.."  
Takashi folded his arms, a small smirk creeping onto his face, "what's the name of that author?"  
"Takashi Shirogane..?"  
"And what's my name?"  
"Shi-..." Keith paused, a wave of realisation washed over him. He face palmed, "no way.. no WAY! You can't be.. him.." Keith gasped. Takashi just chuckled and nodded. Keith's eyes widened again, "but.. why didn't you tell me? Why hide that?"  
Takashi shrugged, "I was scared.. scared that if I told you straight away, you'd only like me because I'm considered famous.."  
Keith hummed, "oh.. I guess that makes sense.. anyway.. everyone thinks you're dead! Where are your stories..?" He continued to flood Takashi with questions, the shock had gotten to him and his fanboying self took over. 

Takashi smiled sadly, "yeah.. I mean.. after my mother's death, I kinda just.. lost the will to write.. it's been difficult.. she was there, supporting me through my career, right until the end.." he began to tear up, making Keith sigh sadly. He took ahold of the older male's hand and stroked over it with his thumb, "I'm so sorry.. Everything will get better, Takashi, I promise.." Keith gave him an encouraging smile.  
"Y-yeah.. I know.. thank you.." Takashi replied and kissed the side of Keith's head before continuing, "it sounds weird when you call me Takashi.." he chuckled.  
"Heh.. well.. I like the name.. am I allowed to use it in front of the others?" Keith asked. Takashi nodded, "yeah, I think I'm ready to tell them.."  
"Heh.. yeah, Lance seemed to recognise you anyway.. I'm kinda surprised I didn't.."  
"Yeah.. heh.. that was weird."  
"I just.. it amazes me that.. it's really you.." Keith said with admiration, making Takashi blush. "Awh.. heh.. I'm glad you like my stories.."   
"Of course I do! They're amazing!"  
"Well.. thank you.."  
"Anyway.. I should get going.. I'll see you soon, Takashi.." Keith said and leaned up to kiss his cheek. He then left, hippo in hand, Takashi waved him goodbye and smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 915 words.
> 
> Thanks for reading!!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is mainly an Allurance chapter,  
> Lance takes her on a date :)

Lance had finally received the courage to ask Allura out, with a little push from Pidge and Hunk. He entered 'Altea', it wasn't as busy since he and Keith had went there together. Because it wasn't busy, Lance was able to have a conversation with Allura at the till. He decided to have a more sincere approach as he realised that his smug approach didn't sound serious enough.

"Hey, Allura.. uhm.. I need to ask you something.." Lance said as sweetly as possible. She raised an eyebrow, "oh? Uh.. okay.." Allura said unsurely. Lance gulped and gave her a smile, "I was wondering.. if you'd like to go on a date with me..?" He asked, making Allura's eyes widen slightly. "Wow.. I didn't think you'd have the courage to actually ask me out.."  
Lance raised an eyebrow, "rude..- uhm.. anyway.. so? Will you do it?" He asked hopefully. Allura thought for a minute, "Hm.. yeah, alright. Name a time and place, I'll be there." She said confidently. Lance's face lit up, "well.. h-how about when your break starts.. at the park?"  
Allura nodded in agreement, "sounds good.. my break is in about 30 minutes, how about I meet you at the lake in 45 minutes?"  
"Ok! I'll see you soon.." Lance said and winked at her before strolling out of 'Altea'.

Over the next 30 minutes, Lance got himself ready for the date. He was still in shock from the fact that the girl of his dreams accepted the offer. Smiling to himself, Lance walked to the park which now had piles of leaves dotted over the land. The trees were all bare, the branches made distorted shapes and figures.

Lance had set up a little picnic blanket and basket by the lake, he sat on the bench opposite the lake while he waited. A couple minutes later, Allura strolled over to him. "Hey, Lance!" She chirped, making Lance blush slightly.  
"Hey, Allura.. looking good~" he replied smoothly, Allura rolled her eyes and chuckled.  
"Well, thanks.."  
"Heh.."  
"So, got a plan?"  
Lance immediately grabbed Allura's hand and took her over to the blanket and basket, she chuckled. "Wow, Lance. I didn't realise you could be so romantic!"  
"Heh.. well, that's me! Romantic Lancey Lance~" he replied with a smirk before sitting down cross-legged on the checkered fabric. Allura gracefully sat down next to him, smiling, "this is adorable.." she said while Lance took out a couple of snacks. "I, uh.. know this isn't exactly the best time of year for this sort of thing.. but I wanted to try something which was sincere, you know?"  
Allura nodded, "I think this is sweet.. besides, I don't mind this kind of weather.. it's nice.." she shrugged.

The two spent a while talking with one another, they would laugh together which would echo through the deserted park. Lance felt that the date was successful, Allura seemed to enjoy it. She thanked Lance with a small chuckle and kissed him on the cheek before heading back to 'Altea'. Lance sighed contently and packed everything up, he skipped home happily.

Allura had asked him out for a second date, he was so relieved that she didn't reject him.

*

As soon as he got home, he texted Hunk, Pidge and Keith about the date. They all replied supportively, which Lance was thankful for. Keith had texted his positive reply, but then texted something else. 'You're not the only lucky one, check my IG..'  
Lance raised his eyebrow before opening the app. He went onto Keith's feed, his most recent picture was of him and Takashi taking a selfie with the stuffed hippo. The caption read 'it's official!' The caption also had Takashi's account tagged, @TakashiShirogane . Lance was happy for his best friend, he had routed for their relationship since the beginning. He was so happy that he had completely skipped passed an important detail, which made his eyes dart back to the caption.

Lance's jaw dropped.

Keith had tagged Takashi Shirogane.

Takashi Shirogane was one of his favourite authors. He knew he recognised him the first day he saw Takashi walk into the flower shop. 

He tapped onto Takashi's verified account to see if he and Keith were actually dating. Takashi had posted the exact same picture, a short caption being a '❤️'. However Keith's account wasn't tagged. He didn't want his boyfriend being harassed, after all. The comment section consisted of mainly things like 'OMG YOU'RE ALIVE!', 'AWH SO CUTE! WHO IS HE??' Or 'that's gay', which of course got a lot of defensive comments.

Lance's jaw stayed dropped, he still couldn't believe it. This day couldn't get anymore crazy.

He went on a successful date with the girl of his dreams and his best friend was dating his favourite author.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Thank you for reading this chapter!
> 
> Papa so I reread some of this fanfic, completely forgetting that I added something later that is kinda weird/creepy loool
> 
> (Look forward to that lmao)
> 
> Also!! Because this is an older fanfic of mine, I did make the chapters quite short.. I’m really sorry about that lololol
> 
> \- Salty


	9. Chapter 9

The next time the group all hung out together at 'Altea' on Allura's break, Lance, Hunk and Pidge would coo over Keith and Shiro's new relationship. Of course Keith would come off as slightly defensive but Takashi would chuckle and place his hand delicately onto Keith's, hoping to calm him down. Keith would then reply with a comment on Lance's date with Allura, which made the other male and female blush. 

Lance decided to keep the conversation about Keith and Shiro by saying, "I still can't believe it's you.. Takashi Shirogane.. I-I've been a fan for years..! I thought you were dead.." He kept a hushed tone so not to draw attention to their group. Takashi smiled, "heh.. well I'm not dead.. and I'm glad you like my novels.."   
"Who wouldn't?" Lance replied smoothly, making the two chuckle.

The mood within the group was a happy and warm feeling. Everyone was chatting away cheerfully for a few minutes, sharing a few jokes. Suddenly Hunk spoke up with an idea, "how do you guys feel about ice skating? The park is going to set up a rink soon! Maybe we should go as a group?"   
The feedback was pretty positive, Keith, Lance, Pidge and Allura loved ice skating even if some of them weren't the best. 

However, Keith was quite good at ice skating. His old childhood friends, which he has lost all contact with by now, had taken him to the rink quite often when it was open. He first hated being on the ice as it was cold and wet, but was eventually drawn to the idea of gliding across the glistening surface. Whenever they had gone in the past, he had to help the others stay upright. 

Lance was also quite good at it, he was graceful when on the ice, elegant even. He had loved it ever since he first stepped foot onto it with his older siblings and parents helping him start off.

He and Keith were quite competitive on the matter, claiming that one was better than the other.

Allura, Pidge and Hunk weren't so great. They'd stumble more often, use each other and the sides for balance. The three didn't seem to care, they enjoyed ice skating whenever the group received the chance to do so.

The five turned to Takashi about the idea. He scratched his head and gave an apologetic smile, "I've never ice skated before.. but I'm willing to give it a try.."   
Keith chuckled, "good.. I can give you a hand when it comes to skating, if you'd like.." he suggested, Takashi nodded.  
"Sounds good."  
"Great! We should order tickets, how about next Friday at 7?" Hunk chirped with a smile. 

The group agreed and began their own conversations with one another, Lance looked at Keith and smirked. "I bet I'm gonna be better than you this time round! Watch me impress your boyfriend on the ice!"  
Keith rolled his eyes, "and watch *me* impress everyone else.." he said, clicking his tongue. Lance huffed in annoyance, "yeah, right! Watch me land a jump this year!"  
"Oh, please, I've been able to land a jump for ages.." Keith replied coolly. Lance grumbled and continued to argue with Keith, who'd sigh and tell him to calm down.

This quarrel led to Takashi leaning over to Hunk and Pidge, who were have a more civil conversation. "Are they usually like this? You know, competitive with each other?" He asked with concern, the two nodded. "Yeah.. they don't argue all that much anymore, it used to be really bad.. but it's better now. It's only ice skating that they're competitive about..-" Pidge said before being cut off by Hunk.  
"-And who cats like better!"  
"They have.. weird feuds.." Pidge chuckled, adjusting her glasses. Takashi nodded uncertainly before turning to Lance and his boyfriend, who still seemed to be arguing harmlessly. 

He sighed softly, wrapping an arm around Keith, "guys. Chill. It's just ice skating.."  
"Shirooooo! It's not just ice skating!" Lance whined.  
"Uh. Yes it is.." he replied and rolled his eyes, smiling. Keith grunted and leaned into Takashi, "let's just call it a draw.."   
Lance reluctantly obliged, grumbling again.

Soon enough everyone had to start heading home, including Takashi. He had decided to continue his writing, money began running out for him. Plus, he felt happy enough to continue. The group and Keith had helped his general mood. Takashi kissed Keith's forehead and said goodbye to everyone, he made his way back home. As soon as he did, he went into social media and vaguely explained his temporary disappearance and hiatus. He used the excuse 'family things', which wasn't a lie, and hoped people wouldn't pry on about it. Afterwards, he began writing again. The stories that he had abandoned for months were finally being updated. 

By Thursday, he had managed to send his story to his editor and waited for it published. He also waited for copies to be made, Takashi decided that about 100 should be made until he knows how high the demand for it is.

Friday rolled around, he had his ticket for the ice skating. It was about 6:40, he strolled through dark. Takashi was instructed to meet the others outside the rink a few minutes early.

It was 6:55 when he saw the others roll down to him. Takashi could just about make out smiles on each of the figures, it was quite difficult as it was dark even if there were street lamps and lights shining from restaurants. He hugged Keith and said hello to everyone.

They made their way inside, greeted by bright, neon lights and a group of mainly teenagers and adolescents. The group walked up to the counter, giving in their tickets. One by one, everyone exchanged their foot size. Slowly, everyone put on their skates, towering over the others who hadn't got them on. Keith was given his skates before Takashi, so he treaded over to him and smirked. "Awhhh babe! You're finally taller than me!" Takashi gasped jokingly, shooting down whatever his boyfriend had planned to say, and chuckled at a now-pouting Keith. He huffed, "oh whatever.."

Everyone now had skates on, they waited for the people who were previously skating to get off the ice. Once they had all filed through the small rink gate, the gang made their way onto the ice with Lance and Keith leading. Their competitive natures were showing once again. The two had done a couple laps of showing-off before stopping to help their friends. Lance had gone straight for Allura and Hunk, whereas Keith went over to Takashi and Pidge. 

Everyone took their time to get used to the ice, Lance then took Allura's hand and skated slowly next to her with a smile. She smiled back, gliding in sync with Lance. Allura wobbled a couple times, but was kept up by the tall male.

Keith then began skating with Takashi, they were a little slower than Lance and Allura but kept the same positive attitude. They kept in time with the music that was blasting at the time, stepping with each beat of the music. 

Pidge and Hunk still kept glued against the wall, until Hunk finally got the courage to skate without help. Pidge soon followed him, wobbling but managing to stay balanced.

They all enjoyed themselves, Pidge and Hunk had fallen over a few times but would laugh it off. Allura and Takashi had a few times close to falling but due to Keith and Lance's petty competition, the males kept Allura and Takashi up.

Eventually, Takashi, Allura, Pidge and Hunk had to take a break. They decided to watch the two men skate competitively with one another. Lance, indeed, made a landing for a jump. He looked majestic as he flew through the air. After landing, Lance received claps from the public. He was slightly surprised, but smiled and bowed. Then Keith began to show off, he wasn't as majestic or graceful as Lance, he had speed which allowed the momentum from a jump carry out into a second jump. Takashi watched him zoom through the neon lights, he looked gorgeous as his hair flew behind his swift figure. He also received praise from the 'audience', making Keith blush from embarrassment and smile.

The session soon ended, everyone began to skate towards the rink gate. Returning the skates, Takashi thanked the woman behind the counter on behalf of the rest of the group. Once everyone made it out of the lobby-like place, they said their goodbyes. Keith kissed Takashi's cheek and made his way home, Allura, Lance, Pidge and Hunk said goodbye to each other and Takashi before heading in their separate ways.

Takashi really enjoyed his night, his fondness for Keith or the rest of the group didn't seem to fade. He loved them like a family. Takashi was thankful for them.


	10. Chapter 10

As days and weeks went by, Takashi and Keith became more intimate with each other. The same happened to Allura and Lance, they had gone on another date and it was successful. Hunk had found himself a friend named Shay. Of course Lance teased him about it, as friends do. She had met he group and was instantly welcomed. She was sweet to everyone, especially Hunk. They had clicked almost as soon as they met. This was shown as the group saw how they interacted with one another. Whenever she would have to leave, Hunk and Shay would exchange awkward goodbyes and a smile. Lance, Pidge and Allura would coo over Hunk's possible future relationship with Shay, but he'd always shut it down as he knew how over-protective her brother, Rax, is.

Takashi and Keith would just watch and roll their eyes. They wouldn't tease about Hunk and Shay. Keith, for one, found it a stupid thing to fuss over. Takashi just felt that if they wanted to be together, they would on their own accord.

It was a couple weeks until Christmas, Takashi began decorating his house while blasting Christmas music. He had asked Lance and Hunk to help him as they were both quite tall and strong. Lance had already set up his decorations, he had done them in the first week of December. Hunk on the other hand, hadn't set them up just yet, he had planned to do it the week after.

The three enjoyed their time setting up the glistening tinsel, baubles and the tree, which Hunk and Lance were instructed to do before arriving at Takashi's house. They were both baffled as they walked inside to see the amount of newspaper clippings and articles hung up on the walls.

Once again, Takashi promised he wasn't a narcissist.

Lance and Hunk had dragged the tree into Takashi's living room, which already had a few decorations hung up. Once the men had the tree up, Takashi allowed Lance to decorate it as he seemed eager to do so. This left the other two to decorate the halls, they began pinning tinsel up and some light-up snowflakes.

After an hour or so of cringey Christmas music playing, the three males had finished decorating. Takashi thanked Lance and Hunk before they left. 

Once the two had left, Takashi continued his writing. He didn't really have anything else to do, luckily he was able to make money from preorders from his most recent novel. Money was coming, but slowly. He had already received an offer from a reporter to interview him about his disappearance for a certain sum of money. It was a TV interview, Takashi of course accepted the deal. Not going to lie, he was terrified. Not because he had to be on live TV, but because he knew that he would need to explain his disappearance. That would be slightly painful, but he knew he could power through it. 

Takashi remembered that the interview was for tomorrow, so he decided to instantly get himself ready. He decided to prepare himself for any questions he might have thrown at him. The tall male stood up and rehearsed his answers as he paced across his festive living room, the harsh bright lights had made his concentration falter slightly. 

After an hour or so, he took a break from his mumbling. A ring from the doorbell echoed through Takashi's mansion of a home, making him jump. He turned around and jogged over to the door to find Keith standing out in the cold. The smaller male was looking up at something dangling from roof of the door, mistletoe. "Was that intentional?" Keith asked with a chuckle and a blush. "Uhm.. Lance must've hung that up when I wasn't looking.." Takashi mumbled timidly before looking down at Keith and smiling awkwardly. The smaller male shrugged and went on his numb toes to place a kiss on Takashi's lips. His heart fluttered, making him almost forget how cold Keith must've been from standing outside the doorway. Once Takashi noticed his boyfriend shivering, he apologised profusely before immediately leading him through to the living room and shutting the heavy door. He made Keith sit down on the sofa and chucked a fluffy blanket over him, making the other chuckle and explain that he wasn't cold. Takashi didn't listen to his words, instead he continued to be the over protective boyfriend. 

After a couple minutes, Takashi brought the two some hot chocolate. Keith had warmed up slightly by then, he rolled his eyes and smiled before taking the mug and thank the other. Takashi joined him on the sofa, "sorry for leaving you out in the cold like that.. heh.."  
"You didn't leave me out there for long! I'm fine, seriously.." Keith said for what felt like the 100th time.  
"I know, I know.. anyways.. is there a reason you've come to visit?" Takashi smiled, taking a sip from his steamy mug.  
"I wanted to see if you're okay. I mean, you have the interview and all.." Keith replied softly. Takashi nodded, "yeah.. I'm kinda scared.. thanks for coming over.."   
"It's no problem.. I'm sure you'll be great!" Keith said optimistically, making Takashi chuckle.  
"Thanks, Kogane.."  
"You're welcome, Shirogane.."  
They both laughed.

A couple hours had whizzed by, it was getting dark so Takashi decided to take Keith home. There was no way he'd let him walk home in the dark, so he drove him home. 

Keith's house looked much smaller that Takashi's. Keith didn't seem to care, he pecked Takashi's lips and thanked him for the ride before stepping out of the car and walking to his front door. After a couple seconds of fumbling with his keys, he was able to step inside his house. Keith turned and waved Takashi off as he drove away.

The next day came, Takashi got up and dressed into his most formal thing that wasn't a suit. The interview was to commence at 1:00pm, he was instructed to arrive half an hour early to get set up. The drive was about 45 minutes, so he decided to leave at about 11:30am to give him time.

He strolled up to his car, keys in hand, Takashi unlocked his car and stepped in. He began driving along the mildly icy road, while playing whatever was on the radio at that time. He heard mentions of his interview, making him excited yet nervous.

He soon arrived at the reception, a stern face greeted him. "Welcome. Do you have an appointment?" The woman asked, slight disgust in her tone. This made Takashi a bit sceptical, "uh, no. I have an interview live in about half an hour.." the woman began tapping away on her computer, "Takashi Shirogane? Shiro-gayne? Is that how you pronounce it?"  
"Uh, Shiro-gahn-ey, actually.." Takashi replied with a stutter. The lady just rolled her eyes, "whatever.." she then turned to one of the other staff members, "hey, Ulaz! Get over here and take Mr Shiro-gahn-ey to set 1.."   
The giant-of-a-man supposedly called 'Ulaz' turned his head and glanced down at Takashi. He gave him somewhat of a smile and walked over to him. Takashi had to crane his neck as Ulaz seemed to tower over him. He was quiet, spoke very little, he led Takashi onto he set. 

Before he left him, Ulaz finally said something, "sorry about the receptionist. She doesn't like people.." he spoked in a gruff tone.  
"The receptionist doesn't.. like people?" Takashi questioned with a quizzical expression, making Ulaz grunt a short, unenthusiastic laugh. "Ironic, right?"  
"Quite.." Takashi replied with a half-hearted chuckle, "thank you, U-laz?"  
"Don't mention it. Good luck with the interview." Ulaz said with a masked kindness in his voice as he walked away.

Takashi looked around the busy set, people wearing head sets were running around all over the place. Someone eventually noticed Takashi and got him set up with mics and sat him down. There was rows and rows of chairs as well as cameras set up, Takashi took a deep breath as he prepared himself mentally.

The interview had gone quite well, the interviewer herself was quite kind. She knew the limits on how much Takashi was willing to share on live TV, except one topic. Keith.

She wanted all the news on his knew relationship.

"Takashi, your comeback post after weeks of no sign of you was a image of you with this other man," she started as a image of the post showed up on the back TV, "you only put a heart as the caption. Are you and this unknown male together? Or is he close to you? A family member, perhaps?"  
Takashi gulped, "ah.. well, I don't think he would appreciate it if I shared our relationship status with you. He likes his privacy as much as the next guy-"  
"But all of your fans are wondering who this mystery man is!" The interviewer cut in rudely.  
"I respect his choice of keeping himself hidden. I'll leave it up to my fans to interpret my relationship with him. They can guess whether we're old friends.. or boyfriends.. or anything! I'm not going to give away any hints until I get consent to talk about it from him. Alright?" Takashi persisted sternly, looking at the back wall to see his post of Keith and him. The interviewer sighed in defeat, she knew that she wouldn't get any further, "alright.. welp! That's all we have time for Takashi! Thank you so much for joining us today.."  
"Thanks for having me.. I'm sorry for lashing out there.. heh.." Takashi apologised weakly, earning a chuckle from the woman. "It's no bother! I hope you have a Merry Christmas! And all of you out there! Happy holidays!" She replied with a smile and faced the audience and cameras. 

"You're now offline!" One of the camera guys shouted to the interviewer and Takashi, who began to make his way off the set. He had thanked the crew before he left the building, of course. 

Once he reached home, he checked his phone. He received a couple texts from his friends who had watched the interview, asking if he was okay. He smiled at the fact that they cared, Takashi replied saying he was fine, which was true.

He decided to relax for the rest of the day, he needed his time off. Takashi couldn't wait for Christmas, so he could spend the entire day with his friends, they had all planned to spend the holiday at his home. He had even suggested that Keith came round the night before and slept over, he didn't see, to object to the idea as he didn't exactly have family he wanted to spend Christmas with. Takashi decided that it was best not to ask him questions on his family's situation, it was a touchy subject. Anyone could tell from how Keith reacted if his father or mother were ever mentioned.

Takashi just curled into the sofa and watched TV, he had soon fallen asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> \- Salty

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys!
> 
> So I’m a new writer to Ao3, I originally started on Wattpad to upload my Sheith fanfics. This is one of them, and in my opinion, my best written one. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy this fanfic, as I enjoyed writing it!
> 
> Thanks :)


End file.
